Page 20 of In the Cover of Darkness

I lean down, placing my hands on the bench, our faces so close to each other that I would only need to move an inch closer for our lips to touch. To finally taste her and feel her body pressed against mine.

“Dante,” she whispers again, the need present in her voice as I make the decision to kiss her, leaning closer until my lips just graze hers.

“Hey, are you guys alright out here?” Ace yells from not too far away, his steps crunching in the snow, getting louder the closer he gets to us. Reluctantly, I move away from her. The coldness of the air instantly overtakes the warmth we shared.

“Yeah, we're okay,” I say to him as he rounds the corner, stepping into the barn. Looking over at Mila, I see she has her fingers gently touching her lips, barely resting on them, just as our almost kiss was.

“Um, Mila. Nova just called and said she's on her way over. Just thought I'd let you know in case you needed to do anything before she got here.”

Without looking at me, Mila slides off the bench and walks out of the barn saying thank you to Ace as she passes him. Her behaviour confused me. It feels a lot like rejection and I know I'dfucked up. I pushed her too hard too fast and I need to back right off for a while.

Chapter 19 - Mila

Breathe, just keep breathing. My body is on fire as I slide off the workbench in the barn and walk toward the house. Did that just happen … Did we just kiss? What might have happened if Ace didn't interrupt us? I have visions of me ripping open his shirt, and running my hands over his hard chest. I wonder what he looks like with no top on? I bet he's better than anything I could imagine. Trevor was trim, yet he was still strong despite his ever growing beer belly.

I've seen snippets of Dante's powerful arms when he's rolled up his sleeves. Felt his firm chest when we lay together in bed. He definitely has tattoos, but I'm not sure how much of him is covered in them. The room is always too dark at night when we're in the same bed, or he will wear a top to sleep in. I wonder if I'm still crawling into his bed when spring arrives if he will take his top off to sleep and I'll get to see what he looks like. He's so strong that he just effortlessly picked me up in the barn, making sure not to touch my ribs or anywhere else I'm sore. It's like he's memorised where I'm hurt and is so gentle in how he touches me. He looks so rough and grumpy all the time, it catches me off guard in the moments he is so delicate.

Can I really be considering starting something with Dante when I'm still covered in bruises from my ex? I wish I had someone to talk to about this, which reminds me I need to call Charlie as soon as Nova leaves today. She will know what to do and if I'm being ridiculous for even considering this. I can't say I've ever had this pull toward someone though. It could be because he saved me, so maybe I'm just attaching myself to another man who will change over time. I don't exactly have a great history with choosing men so why would it all change now. Charlie will know what to do, I mean, she saw Trevor for what he was a mile away, so I value her opinion.

The sound of a car pulling up breaks me out of my chain of thought. Looking out the window I can see a large black Range Rover stopping outside the house, with Ace and Dante walking up to the driver's side door. They are partially blocked from where I'm standing in the kitchen, so I make my way over to the front door to wait on the porch outside.

Opening the door I'm met with the sounds of a soft female voice flowing through the air. What makes me smile however are the words she is saying are anything but.

“Move Ace you dick, I didn't come here to see you and Dante, no offence Dante, I mean, it's lovely to meet you and all but I'm sure you're just another Ace … no offence.”

I can see Dante's head over the top of the Range Rover and he looks … uncomfortable. Ace on the other hand looks as happy as anything, smiling and picking up who I can only assume is Nova, giving her a big bear hug.

“Put me down you idiot, ughh you are so annoying,” her words however, don't match her actions and I can see how tightly she's hugging Ace back.

“Where is she then? You two haven't bored her with all your man talk have you?”

“Man talk, what's man talk?” Ace laughs.

“You know, guns, cars and how successful you are with the ladies,” she says, wiggling her eyebrows at them and laughing. If he wasn't before, Dante is definitely uncomfortable now. He's looking anywhere but toward Nova until he sees me standing on the porch and we lock eyes.

“Hey, I'm successful with the ladies,” Ace responds, sounding like he's trying to convince himself and the rest of us about his casanova status.

“Your sister doesn't count Ace,” and I can't help but laugh, at both her response and the look on Ace's face.

“I don't have a sister,” Ace mumbles in reply.

From behind the Ranger Rover, a woman appears and she could pass for an angel from the way she's glowing. Her hair is so blonde it's almost white with the sun shining on it. She's small and petite but has a fire radiating from her. She oozes confidence and power, but not in a bad way, more that she knows what she wants and no one will prevent her from getting it.

Stopping in front of me, I can't help but stare at her and am suddenly embarrassed about the bruises she can see as well as Dante’s oversized clothes that I'm wearing.

“Hi, you must be Mila,” she says to me, with only kindness and compassion in her tone, the complete opposite to how she was talking with Ace and Dante.

I'm a bit stuck for words at this point. What I thought would be a simple meeting has me tongue-tied and I'm struggling to come up with what I'm meant to say to her.

Without missing a beat, she intertwines her arm in mine, guiding me back inside the house, not before yelling, “Later losers,” back to Ace and Dante who are still standing in the driveway looking at us.

Back in the kitchen, and sitting on the same bar stool as last night, I watch as Nova starts moving about like she lives here. Pulling ingredients from the fridge and pantry, starting to make something that I can only describe ascontains a lot of chocolate, I'm not even sure if it's edible. She's not forcing me to talk, just simply going about her business waiting until I'm ready.

Finally, after what feels like enough comfortable silence has passed I ask, “Have you known Ace long?”

“A few years now, he actually saved me. The situation was a little different to yours though. He told me the Cliff Notes version of what happened to you, but don't worry, no one else in town knows. Just me and Ace,” she says with a soft smile on her face.

"We don't have to get into the thick of what happened to you now or ever for that matter. There are still parts of what happened to me that I've not told anyone. But I need you to know that when you're ready, and there's no time frame on when that might be. But, when you're ready, I have a job waiting for you if you want it, and I have a little studio apartment for you to live in if you want it too."

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